The Curse of Arkady by Emily Drake

Author:Emily Drake
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: Penguin Group US
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Eleanora glided across the floor, and wrinkled her nose slightly. Ever defiant of her petite size, she had a habit of levitating a few inches, the hem of her long skirts concealing the fact that she hovered in the air. “You . . . put garlic in your tea?” she asked softly, as Bailey took the whistling pot off the stove and carefully poured very hot water into their best china teapot. The smell of lemon slices and jasmine tea wafted up from the steaming pot as Bailey blushed.

“Ummm . . . no,” Bailey answered. “That’s repellent.”

“Very effective.” Smiling, Eleanora sat down at the table, in long skirt and long-sleeved ruffled blouse, and waited for her tea to be poured. She watched Bailey. “When someone activates the alarm beacon, I would gather it’s for more than tea. I expected to find trouble.” She extended one slender hand from her ruffled sleeve, tapping her fingers on the table as Bailey poured out two cups and sat down.

Bailey took the chair opposite Eleanora who showed no surprise as Lacey ran down her arm and grabbed a cookie crumb before retreating back up to a perch on Bailey’s shoulder. She dunked her cookie and enjoyed the satisfying sweetness before answering. “I’m not sure if we had trouble or not. Making sure would have led to more trouble, I think. Like sending a cheese to find a cheese.”

Eleanora opened a pink packet of sweetener to dose her tea. “I see. I think. There was something here but you didn’t investigate what?”

“I think I had a wolfjackal at the door.”

“And no way of finding out for sure unless you opened it to look?”

Bailey nodded. “The peephole wouldn’t let me see something that was low and up against the door.”

“So . . . you put down garlic at the threshold?”

“Something kept walking by and sniffing. At first I thought it was the guide dog upstairs, but they’re usually at work now. I couldn’t think of anything to do, except that.”

“Ingenuous! Apparently it worked.” Eleanora cupped her pendant, a distant look on her face. “There is nothing I sense in the corridor now. However . . .” She frowned, closed her eyes a moment, then opened them and looked at Bailey. “I’m afraid you might have been right. There is a taint there, and it’s not raw garlic.” She smiled slightly. “They were bold to have struck here, where they can be observed. They won’t be back. They will try other, more shadowy methods next time. You’re going to have to be awfully careful, Bailey.”

Bailey shivered. The hairs on the back of her neck and along her arms stood up. She rubbed at her arms. “But I’m safe here, at least for now? They won’t try to get us? My mom and I?”

“I can’t guarantee that, but the Dark Hand is successful because it doesn’t leave itself open to discovery. They know you know that they have located you here, and you can’t be taken without a fight, a struggle they want to avoid for now.

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